CDM and health and safety

On 6 April 2007, the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 came into force. replacing previous CDM and construction regulations. The main objectives of CDM 2007 are to:

• reduce residual health and safety risks on construction projects
• improve project planning and management right from the concept stage
• ensure the implementation of the Regulations adds value to construction projects.

Summary of duties

Under CDM 2007, general and specific duties for duty holders are clearly defined:

• where construction projects are not notifiable to the HSE, general duties will apply
• when construction projects are notifiable to the HSE, specific additional duties will apply.

All duty holders are obliged to cooperate with all project participants and all parties must coordinate their activities to ensure the health and safety of operatives and others affected by the works.

Duty holders must only accept a commission or engagement to perform any role under CDM 2007 if they deem themselves competent to carry out any such role. The criteria for assessing and demonstrating the competence of designers, contractors and coordinators is defined in CDM 2007 and the associated Approved Code of Practice.

The descriptions below of specific duties are for projects that are notifiable.

The Client

• The Client is to confirm Consultants and Principal Contractor appointments. Where this is not expressly done, roles of duty holders under CDM 2007 will be assumed by default.
• The client should appoint the CDM Coordinator as soon as possible and in any case before detailed design commences.
• The Client is to ensure construction works do not commence until the Principal Contractor has made suitable arrangements to establish welfare facilities on site.

There is continued emphasis on the Client's obligation to engage a ‘competent’ project team – the criteria for competence is detailed explicitly in the Approved Code of Practice. The Regulations clearly state that the Client should ensure sufficient time and resource is allowed for each stage of the project. This is to ensure health and safety issues are adequately addressed. The Client must establish firm mobilisation periods for the construction works in the development programme from the outset of the project. This is to ensure the Principal Contractor is allowed sufficient time to plan and prepare for the works prior to the construction phase commencing.

The Client is obliged to promptly provide members of the project team with relevant and site-specific information that is required to enable them to perform their duties and mitigate residual health and safety risk. The Regulations place an obligation on the Client to ensure suitable arrangements for managing health and safety on projects are established, maintained and reviewed for the life of construction projects.

Designers

'Designers' includes anyone who specifies or alters a design or persons who purchase materials where the choice has been left open.

• Designers are obliged to ensure they do not accept commissions for design work unless they are competent and adequately resourced to manage and mitigate health and safety risk associated with the project as appropriate.
• Designers are obliged to ensure the Client is aware of their duties under CDM 2007.
• Where a project is notifiable they must not commence detailed design work until the Client has appointed a CDM Coordinator.

CDM 2007 requires Designers to eliminate hazards on a project through design where reasonably practicable, and to ensure adequate control measures are established to mitigate residual risk on construction projects. This involves considering all phases of project, design, construction through to maintenance, identifying hazards, evaluating risk, identifying risk owners and persons who may be affected by health and safety risk at each stage.

Designers need to provide adequate information on significant hazards associated with design.

Designers are to ensure cooperation and coordination with other Designers and members of the project team, to facilitate the management and control of project health and safety risk.

Where the design is in relation to a workplace it is explicit that it should comply with provisions in the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992.

The CDM Coordinator

Under CDM 2007, the CDM Coordinator, in effect, acts as a project adviser on health and safety management. This demanding role requires additional resource to implement the duties required.

• Advise and assist the Client with their duties, which include appointing a competent project team and ensuring suitable arrangements are established for managing and monitoring health and safety on the project.
• Source and collate a 'Pre-Construction Information Pack' of relevant and project-specific health and safety information required by Designers and Contractors, particularly at the pre-construction stage, and advise the Client on any surveys or additional information required for mitigating residual health and safety risk on a project.
• Manage the flow of health and safety information between all project participants.
• Advise the Client on the suitability of the initial Construction Phase Health and Safety Plan and ensure that suitable welfare facilities are in place prior to works commencing.
• Prepare and issue to the Client a suitable Health and Safety File at the end of the construction phase of a project.
• Coordinate project planning and design work, advising on the suitability and compatibility of designs.

The Principal Contractor

During the construction phase of a project, the crucial task of planning, managing and coordinating construction work to ensure a project is safely executed remains with the Principal Contractor.

With CDM 2007, the duties of the Principal Contractor remain almost unchanged. However, emphasis is placed on competence, the need for cooperation, coordination, the application of principles of prevention and the management of health and safety on construction sites.

Before accepting a commission, the Principal Contractor should ensure that they are competent to manage and mitigate health and safety issues associated with any such work; and that Clients are aware of their duties under CDM 2007.

Depending on the nature, size and complexity of a construction project, the Principal Contractor should ensure that sufficient resources are applied to the project to meet the needs of CDM 2007.

Prior to construction works commencing on site the Principal Contractor should ensure:

• suitable Initial Construction Phase Health and Safety Plan;
• welfare facilities (and ensure that the site is secured against unauthorised access); and
• adequate and sufficient arrangements to monitor and maintain a high standard of health and safety on site.

The Principal Contractor should engage only Designers and Contractors deemed as 'competent', as detailed in the Approved Code of Practice. The Principal Contractor is to ensure that relevant health and safety information and associated training, and site induction, is provided as appropriate. The Principal Contractor should provide the CDM Coordinator promptly with relevant information required for the preparing the Health and Safety File.